LAMB WITH SALTED LEMON

by Paula Senor
(Nerja, Spain)

6 tablesps. olive oil
1 piece (size garlic clove) fresh ginger crushed
1 clove garlic, crushed
¼ teasp. powdered saffron
2 lbs boneless lamb
2 Spanish onions chopped
2 lbs scraped new potatoes
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 salted lemon

Method

Put oil, garlic, ginger and saffron into a big, wide pan. Add the lamb and turn to coat with the oil. Add the onions.
Divide the lemon into quarters, remove and discard the flesh and pith and add the skin to the pan with enough water to cover the lamb.
Bring to the boil, lower the heat and simmer until the lamb is almost tender.
This may take up to 2 hours.
Add the potatoes and continue cooking until the potatoes are tender.
If there is still too much liquid, take out the meat and vegetables and keep warm whilst reducing the sauce by fast boiling.
Season with salt, if needed, and freshly ground pepper. Hot French bread and a mixed green salad complete this easy meal.

Note: Chickens are also excellent cooked this way. Cut one bird into about 12 pieces and halve the cooking time. Lamb or chicken with salted lemons can be cooked in advance and re-heated. It can also be frozen.

SALTED LEMONS
7 fresh firm, thin-skinned lemons 7 tablesps. sea salt

Method

Wait until you can find thin-skinned lemons before making this preserve since coarse, pithy lemons are not nearly as good.
Scrub the lemons with warm water and a soft brush; scald a Kilner or Parfait jar that is large enough to hold all the fruit. Using a stainless steel knife cut six of the lemons lengthways as if into quarters but not right through. Pack a tablespoonful of salt into each one and pack them tightly into the jar. Add the remaining salt and strained juice of the seventh lemon.
Top up with boiling water to cover the fruit.
Close the jar tightly and leave it for 2-3 weeks in a cool, dark place.
Once matured, salted lemons keep well for many months. Or alternatively

3 UNWAXED LEMONS WITH SEA SALT
4 cloves (optional) 1 tsp. peppercorns (optional)
1 cinnamon stick (optional) 1 large jam jar

Cut two of the lemons in quarters from the top almost to the bottom, as above.
Tip 1 tsp. inside each lemon and press quarters together again, squashing it down as far as possible.
1 tablesp of salt into the jar, then push in one of the lemons so the juice flows.
Jam the second lemon on top and squash down as far as possible.
Add another tablespoon of salt then squeeze over the juice of the 3rd lemon. The lemons should be completely submerged. Leave for a month, shaking jar occasionally. If a white deposit forms, don’t worry it’s quite harmless, just rinse the lemons before use.

Salted lemon rind can also be used to season cold food. It is particularly good with tuna, fresh or tinned. Sprinkle slivers of salted lemon on a tuna salad.